FaLLen
by Lady Mirelle
Summary: When OC Katrin-Blue "falls" into the story of Deathnote, will she be able to return home, or will her collaboration with the great detective, L, change the story forever? Will include romance with L, Light and my OC, Katrin-Blue.
1. Chapter 1  Falling In

FaLLen

(Author's note: Obviously all Deathnote related characters/words are copyrighted to the original creators. This story is going to end up being long, I hope (not sure how long yet), with some romance along the way between various characters. I'm working mostly off the first two movies, but I've read the first 8 volumes of the manga so far, so I hope that it will be accurate. Please bear in mind that I'm only a fledgling writer, but I'll try my very best to make sure my grammar and punctuation are accurate. Also, please tell me what you think! I'd love some feedback, but please don't be negative unless you're criticising in a constructive way. Thank you for reading! - Mirelle)

Chapter 1 – Falling In

Katrin-Blue Coulton switched on her TV, and pressed play.

It had been the most awful day. Nothing had gone according to plan. It had been the day in which she was supposed to be receiving her university acceptance letter, but it had been sent to her old house, her parents' house. Her mother had found out that she had chosen to go into performing arts after all, and had just about disowned her. So, now she felt crap. It was time for her to make that escape to the one place she knew she could feel safe, calm and unafraid. She had watched these two movies so often she could quote them word for word, either in the original Japanese or by the English sub-titles. She had read the manga series so often that the books themselves were falling apart.

She waited for the titles of the DVD to roll. It was taking longer than usual to load …

Whilst waiting, she pulled her sleek black hair out of its ponytail, letting it fan out into its usual frantic mane around her face and shoulders. She kicked off her shoes and pulled off her socks, then tucked her feet up onto the edge of the chair.

"Come on, load already, I need some Deathnote love today," Katrin muttered, pulling a face at the blank screen. As though responding to her plea, the screen flickered into life, though what she saw was not the title sequence, nor was it an error message.

A pair of fierce, maniacal eyes faded into view. A harsh voice whispered something that Katrin could not understand, and then the screen faded to black. Katrin felt herself being pulled towards the screen, as though by some invisible cord wrapped around her waits. She resisted, shocked by the sudden, strange tugging, but was pulled nonetheless, across the room until she was pressed against the screen of the television.

"HELP!" she cried, instinctively, pushing her flat palms against the screen to stop herself being pulled against it. The pain around her waits suddenly intensified to an agonising level and she blacked out.

Somewhere in a world beyond our own, a God of Fate watched as the dark-haired girl disappeared into the television. With a chuckle, he placed her into the very story with which she had become obsessed…

* * *

L jumped into his chair, resting on the balls of his feet, hunching over his laptop. He stared at the figured on the screen.

"Watari ... I believe there is a ninety percent chance that Kira is in Japan. I would like to return there immediately," the young man declared, in a flat voice.

"I shall arrange for a jet to take us as soon as possible," the older man, wearing a smart suit and a fond smile, replied.

"Thank you," L replied.

He started as the screen of his laptop turned blank. He peered at it, in curiosity, as two amber orbs appeared and a harsh, sharp giggle emitted from the speakers.

"Malfunction..." the dark-haired young man muttered. "Watari, step back. There is approximately a forty percent chance that it will-"

L had no chance to finish his sentence, as something exploded from the screen, with a piercing shout. Whatever it was, it came forth with enough force to knock him off his chair and send him flying back across the room.

"Ryuzaki!" Watari called, using one of the the young man's false names out of habit. He jumped to L's aid immediately. Someone was sprawled on top of him, and Watari wanted to move that person off him. It was a young woman, with long dark hair and odd clothes. Watari gently rolled her off L, onto her back. She seemed to be unconscious, as did the detective, so Watari quickly put them both into the recovery position.

L was the first to some round, a minute later. He felt a sharp pain in his abdomen where the girl had hit him, and if he looked under his white t-shirt, he would have seen a large bruise beginning to blossom. He sat up slowly, onto the balls of his feet, to look at the girl.

"It's a human ... But she came out of my computer. This makes no sense ..." he murmured. He pressed one finger to his bottom lip and frowned at the impossible girl, whose features crumpled as she began to gain consciousness. She gave a soft groan, but made no attempt to open her eyes or sit up. L took a moment to inspect her.

"Caucasian, about eighteen years old I think," he pondered aloud. He took in her hair - straight and black but a different texture from most Japanese people's. Her skin was pale, almost sickly in colour, though her cheeks and nose were flushed. Her turned up nose was crusted with almost dried blood, as though she had suffered a nosebleed recently. Her lips were coated in what appeared to be black kohl and her eyes were dusted with grey eye shadow.

Katrin-Blue Coulton gave a second soft groan, and opened her eyes, slowly, one after the other. Her own grey eyes met the dark eyes of the young detective, whose face she knew right away. She did not dare believe what she saw, but failed to stop herself muttering his name, bewildered. Was she hallucinating?

"L... Lawliet?"


	2. Chapter 2 Questions

FaLLen

Chapter 2 – Questions

"Drink this, it will steady you a little," Watari instructed kindly, handing a cup of something black and warm to Katrin. She sipped it delicately. It tasted like very sweet tea, with an undertone of something bitter. Liquorice, perhaps. Katrin began to feel better immediately. The shaky, sick feeling that came with passing out was beginning to fade and the awe she felt for the situation she was in was starting to take over her rational thoughts.

Without realising, by letting L's true name slip from her, semi-consciously, Katrin had sealed her own fate. The genius detective had known that she must be befriended, or he would be killed. What if she had been Kira? It was possible, he thought, given her method of arrival. It perplexed him, how she had fallen through her television and landed on him. That was what she had told him, at least. L decided he would need to keep his wits about him and probe her for information while she was still feeling vulnerable.

"You said your name is Katrin and you aren't Japanese, so why do you speak fluently?" he asked suddenly, breaking the silence with his flat voice.

The girl looked up with a bemused expression. L noticed, with a stab of amusement, that she sat in the same position as he did: she was crouching on her chair instead of sitting on it, and was hunched forwards slightly over the cup of tea.

"I don't speak Japanese. I was wondering why you were speaking such good English," Katrin replied, a frown puckering her smooth skin.

"I'm not speaking English …" L muttered, mirroring her frown with his own. That problem would have to be solved later. More information was needed. He continued.

"How did you know my name?"

"Because I've wa…" Katrin began, but trailed off. She paused, appearing to gather her thoughts before continuing. "I am the world's greatest detective and I know everything about you." She said this with such intense expression in her eyes, which met his as she spoke, that L was inclined to believe her. Well, partially.

"You are not the greatest detective in the world. I am," he huffed, kicking against his desk to make his chair spin. "But you must be a detective to know my real name. How can I know you are not Kira trying to fool me, to kill me?" Again, the girl paused. L watched her closely, but her face did not give anything away. She was blank, if not a little confused. It seemed she was just thinking of how to phrase her reply.

"Because I have given you my name, shown you my face and I am not in Japan. Kira must be in Japan," she replied. L was satisfied with this answer. It was true that she had revealed her identity to him, though not as willingly as one might have liked. As for the comment about Kira being in Japan …

"You are investigating Kira too," L stated, "How much do you know about him?"

"I know more than you do," she answered, loftily. L gave a soft snort, like he was exhaling loudly.

"We'll see about that," he replied. Delicately, he lifted his own teacup to his mouth and slurped some liquid from it. It was intensely sugary, perfect to keep his brain functioning to the maximum. "So," he continued, "Will you work with me on the Kira case, or will I have you arrested for trespassing?"

* * *

Katrin had been careful with her replies. The harrowing thought had jumped into her mind, that if she altered the story too much she might not be able to return home. She was unsure why that had occurred to her, but she decided not to say anything that might implicate her later.

_Later? What am I thinking, later? This must be a dream ..._

She quickly constructed a character for herself, a way of knowing everything about the story without seeming suspicious. But she knew she would have to be careful. If this dream L was anywhere near as brilliant as the real thing, he would suss her out the moment she slipped up.

"Will you work with me on the Kira case, or will I have you arrested for tresspassing?" L continued. Katrin felt her mouth pop open into a perfect "o". He looked blank still, his empty teacup dangling daintily from his upturned thumb. Katrin thought quickly. If she worked with him on the Kira case, the chances of her slipping up and never being able to return home - _Or wake up, whatever_ - would be quite high, she reckoned. Howeve,r being arrested would be much worse, so she replied, "I'll work with you, as long as you don't hold me back."

L gave a small nod of approval and turned to Watari. "Watari, could you show Katrin where she can shower and change, please?"

"I don't have any other clothes," Katrin interjected. L paused, pressing his thumb to his lower lip.

"Watari, there is a kimono in the wardrobe for just such an emergency. Could you fetch it please?"

"Certainly," Watari replied, chuckling softly to himself. He returned with the item in question, holding it up for Katrin to see. She stood uncertainly, moving towards the elderly man. The material looked soft and thick, a dark grey decorated with silver threads, subtly elegant in a modern way. Katrin breathed out slowly and touched the fabric.

"Go shower," L instructed, filling his teacup with more sweet black liquid. "You smell. And you have blood on your nose."

Katrin gasped, pressing a hand to her face to cover her nose. Watari, smiling, showed her to the shower room, where she promptly washed herself from head to toe, starting with the skin around her nose.


	3. Chapter 3 X-Japan

FaLLen

_Dear reader,_

_I haven't written anything for this fic in two years. I don't remember where the plot was going, or even where the next chapter was going but I'm updating because people have been nagging me for it recently. I hope you'll enjoy it, no matter how it turns out. I'm a more mature writer now so I have high hopes. These chapters will probably be brief to keep the style I started with. Thank you so much for your feedback since I've joined this site. This is just for you! Please keep sending reviews and check out my other works._

_Love Mirelle._

* * *

Chapter 3 – X-Japan

Katrin felt that the dark grey kimono suited her well. She was doing her best not to fall asleep next to L on the jet but her freshly-cleaned eyelids were drooping. Her head nodded forwards before long and soon she was snoring loudly against the detective's shoulder. L's eyes widened in discomfort and he looked over to his elderly companion for reassurance, but Watari just smiled in amusement.

L sat stiffly while Katrin's arms unconsciously wrapped around him. He gently licked a lollipop, trying not to look at his bizarre guest. Everything about her threw him off. She was female, for one, and her sudden appearance, knowledge, everything was strange. His mind was in overdrive, hindered by his quiet excitement at returning to Japan.

He could not figure her out. The best thing to do, he deduced, would be to keep a very close eye on her.

"Watari, will you pass me a microphone from inside my case?" he asked, as softly as he could so as not to wake her. Watari obliged silently, nodding his approval at L's caution. Delicately, the detective slipped a hand inside the folds of the kimono and attached the minuscule microphone. As he removed his hand, Katrin stirred.

"Are we close to Tokyo yet?" she murmured, eyes still shut.

"No," L whispered, wrapping his tongue back around his lollipop. She lifted her head up and seemed to wake properly. She snapped into an upright position, her pale cheeks brightening with what L assumed to be embarrassment.

Katrin folded her hands in her lap and sat far away from L. Had she really been sleeping on him? How embarrassing! The character she had grown to love after several years of watching those movies and reading those books and she had fallen asleep on him.

She kept her eyes on the window, anticipating the first time she would get to see Tokyo. Tokyo, a city Katrin-Blue Coulton had staked her whole life on reaching. The performing arts course would lead to acting jobs which would lead to travelling and money … enough to reach that city that set her heart thumping. All it took was falling into her TV. But she'd really thought that when she fell asleep just now she would wake up back in her living room. That she hadn't, it was making her mind race. Perhaps this wasn't a dream after all.

When Japan finally did come into view, she could hardly contain her excitement, but kept a poker-face for the sake of retaining a cool image of the detective-Katrin she had created.

"Pinch me," she muttered, reflexively. There was a sharp pain on her arm. "Ow!"

L offered her an unreadable smile as he withdrew his long fingers. Katrin was sure he was making fun of her.

He turned serious, suddenly. It made Katrin uneasy, how quickly he could go from one expression to the next, from full-of-emotion to blank.

"I am assigning you the code letter 'X'. You will use this if you are communicating with the police via the internet. Use the false name 'Tsukiko' if you must speak to anyone outside of headquarters. Never reveal your face to anyone. Do you understand?"

Katrin nodded. Her heart was racing, and with every beat it was saying "this is real, he is real, we're in Tokyo, the Death Note is real."

Light Yagami was real. Ryuk was real. She knew everything about them and where they would be and what they would do. Her mind was reeling, but she was forming a plan.

"Don't expect me to stay in headquarters all the time. In exchange for my co-operation as a detective, I want freedom to come and go as I please."

L hesitated. "Very well."

He was still exploring the possibility that she wasn't on his side, she realised, with a stab of hurt. But if she was in his shoes, she would have done the same thing.

* * *

Katrin's heart did not slow for the whole journey to headquarters, a hotel in the centre of Tokyo. She wanted to go shopping in Shibuya and watch people dressed wonderfully in Harajuku but there was no chance to do that yet. It was the middle of the night, for one thing. For another, she didn't have any money.

In the car, Katrin turned to L, whose eyes glowed black in the darkness. His presence was disarming, something Katrin never experienced from him until he was physically beside her. He had the presence of a ruler, an emperor who knew he was more important than everyone else.

"I don't have any money," she admitted, after a deep breath.

"I have plenty. Use mine," he returned, without expression. Katrin felt annoyance building up at his lack of interest. After a minute of silence, she snapped.

"It's really difficult to hold a conversation with you."

L didn't reply. With a grunt of frustration, Katrin gave up and they spent the rest of the journey in silence.

* * *

Katrin woke early in the hotel that served as 'headquarters'. The sun was just coming up through the windows. She could hardly believe it when she looked out of them and saw a familiar landscape – Tokyo – and it took a few moments to sink in that she was really where she was. Her thoughts jumped to her parents; that they wouldn't worry where she was, but then she remembered the fight they had had before she had been pulled into this world. It took a lot of strength to blink away the sudden, hot tears.

After pulling herself together, the young woman dressed herself in the grey kimono that Watari had washed when they had arrived at the hotel. It smelt of vanilla and fresh air.

L was in the main sitting room, perching like a crow on the edge of a chair, his head dropped in his arms in sleep. Katrin felt a twinge of panic. L never slept.

She caught hold of his arm and shook him gently. His head rolled to one side, his eyes, which were rimmed with black bruises, opening slowly.

"Hm?" The noise made goose-bumps on Katrin's arms. As innocent as the noise was …

"S-sorry," she mumbled, "I was just worried. I'm sorry I woke you."

He sat up anyway, and stretched his back. Katrin heard his spine click sickeningly.

"Will you go out today?" he asked. She nodded silently. "Take some money and don't get lost," he added, nodding to a cupboard by the windows.

"Thanks," Katrin responded.

"Don't use your real name while you're out," L reminded her.

Katrin smiled to herself. If she could find Light Yagami, there was no way she was going to tell him her real name.

"Don't worry, Ryuzaki."


	4. Chapter 4 God of Death

FaLLen

Chapter 4 – God of Death

It was not difficult to find the Yagami household once she had tracked down the address. She only had to make enquiries about the police chief Yagami to get directions to his house. As she wrote down the instructions the stranger was telling her, she silently thanked gods in which she did not believe for her charm and acting skills, and for whatever force it was that translated the languages inside her head. On the underground train, Katrin drew stares in her grey-coloured kimono, which she had decided to wear until she could buy more clothes later, and the mask she had on which covered the lower half of her face. There were people wearing similar masks, of course, but hers had 死 embroidered in silver onto the black cotton. People whispered behind their hands that she must be a follower of a visual kei band because only someone like that would dress that way. The symbol meant 'death' and she had picked it out for that reason. The irony seemed fitting.

But Katrin did not notice the stares or the whispers because she was deep in thought about her purpose in the story. It was a thought she hadn't dared to dwell on for too long before now but she needed to draw some conclusion before she met Light, otherwise she wouldn't know which branch of her plan to follow.

There was the possibility that her very presence had already altered the course of the story and she would never return, the story never reaching its destined conclusion. There was the possibility that she was supposed to help L to catch Light in the right amount of time and to stop him from dying, as in the movie canon. There was also the marginally more disturbing option that she was supposed to help Light defeat L and rule the world as Kira, as had happened in the first arc of the manga canon. There was no way of knowing what would be the right answer.

Perhaps if she had been supposed to follow the movie arc, L would have looked just like his actor, but he looked rather more obviously Western than MatsuKen. L was only a quarter Japanese, after all, wasn't he? If Light looked more like his manga counterpart, Katrin decided, she would try to aid him. Or at least hold L off for as long as she could. She already had an attachment to the detective whom she had so long admired as Watson admired Holmes, but if it meant she could get home she would do anything she had to. They were only fictional people, after all, she reasoned.

She felt satisfied with her decision by the time she alighted. With a slightly lighter heart, but one that thumped with anticipation, she made her way to the Yagami house. She had to consciously stop herself from squealing like an over-excited fan as she crossed a footbridge leading to the house. An ominous feeling was building up in the very pit of her stomach and she mistook it for excitement.

She rang the doorbell, and held her breath. One, two, three, four-

After four rapid heartbeats, the door opened, a girl a little younger than Katrin herself peering out inquiringly.

"Can I help you?" she asked. Under her mask, Katrin smiled. Sayu.

She slipped the mask down to show her friendly expression and tried not to stare into the house over Sayu's shoulder.

"You must be Sayu. I've heard a lot about you," Katrin began, choosing her words carefully. There was one word that would get Light's attention and she intended to use it. Perhaps it would make his heart pound with fear for a few moments. The thought alone was satisfying.

"Are you a friend of Light's?" the young girl asked, tentatively.

"My name's Tsukiko. He left his notebook in class so I brought it back for him."

Sayu looked cynical, seeing that Katrin had nothing in her hands but smiled and told her to wait. She returned momentarily with Light, giving Katrin enough time to cover her mouth with her mask.

She felt the hair on the back of her neck and on her arms stand up at the sight of Light. He was tall and pale with light brown hair and small, handsome features. His eyes were narrowed, an unfeeling brown like the colour of cold tea, with a slight shadow under them like the slender young man hadn't been sleeping well. She tried to stop her eyes from widening at the sight of him, but his lack of recognition was not obvious to Sayu.

There was a twinkle in his eye. Katrin reminded herself that he had killed people. A shiver ran down her spine. She was thrilled by the thought. Not disgusted, not scared, but thrilled. Later, she checked herself for it but reminded herself yet again that these people were not real. But for now, she was just lost in his cold, murderer's eyes and very, very aware that her life might rest in his killer hands.

"I didn't notice I'd left my notebook." His lips lingered over the word, pronouncing it delicately and deliberately. Katrin was still holding her breath. Was she found out already? But there was that spark of something in his eyes, which she would have recognised as fear if she were not in the midst of the scene herself. "You'd better come up." He turned in to the house and Katrin blew out her breath slowly.

Sayu's sweet smile reassured her that it was all right to come in. She kicked off her shoes and slid her feet into the guests' slippers before following Light up the stairs into his room. She could have found the way without him. Her mind was clear now that she'd seen him – more the manga Light than the movie Light – so she needed to put her plan into action. But of course, she would try to milk the situation for all that she could.

Once in the safety of his room, Light locked the door and launched into questions, his hands visibly shaking.

"Who are you?"

Katrin answered as calmly as she could, trying to show Kira that she could not be shaken by him.

"Tsukiko," she responded, levelly. Her heart was not so calm. She could feel it beating in her throat and could hear it in her ears. Her cheeks were flushed with excitement and she was too warm now in her kimono but she couldn't let herself reveal her face even if the lack of mask would help her to breathe more easily.

"What are you doing here?" He paced the length of his room as Katrin settled herself on the bed.

"I'm here to make a deal with you." Her plan was pushing itself as far forward as it could in her mind. Don't leave loopholes, it screamed. If you leave loopholes for him, you'll die. There was no doubt that Light was the sharper of the two but Katrin had the advantage of knowledge.

"What kind of deal?"

Katrin took a steadying breath but didn't answer fast enough for Light, who jumped straight to his next question.

"The notebook. How do you know about it?"

Under her mask, Katrin grinned. This was really happening. She couldn't get over it.

"Have you heard of the detective, L?" she asked, by way of an answer.

"No," Light admitted. He wasn't familiar enough with the inner workings of the police force just yet, then, and L hadn't conducted his experiment with Lind L Taylor yet. Katrin stored the information away in her calculating brain for later.

"You will soon enough. He's considered the best detective in the world." She paused for effect. A good actress knows how to use timing to her advantage. Light's face clouded with the beginning of a question. "I am L's better," Katrin continued. "I have already deduced your secret and know that I cannot prove your guilt without L's help."

Light kept his composure and, intrigued, sat beside Katrin on the bed.

"But I have a proposal for you." Katrin knew she had his full attention. "Show me the Death Note."

Light narrowed his eyes at her. He did not like being told what to do, especially when it came to his Death Note. He didn't trust this girl with her mask and her high voice and her cunning eyes. But she knew about the Death Note. If someone could find out about it so easily, what could he do? Maybe Ryuk could give her a fright to give him time to think of something.

He glanced at Ryuk, who was crouching by the window, and strode to his desk. He pulled out the drawer and poked the small hole in the bottom with a pen. The false bottom came up and he removed the evil black notebook.

The girl's eyes lit up when she saw it. He had no doubt that her mouth would be curled into a smile, her expression was so delighted. Her dark eyelashes stood out against her skin as her eyes widened. He felt a surge of loathing towards her. It was a blow to his pride that someone so innocent-looking would discover his secret so quickly. An uneasy feeling was building in his guts.

He handed her the notebook. She touched it delicately and her stormy, expressive eyes flicked over to Ryuk. She didn't look afraid and that made anger boil up in Light's chest. He couldn't have any effect on this girl.

"Ryuk!" she cried, as though greeting a childhood friend. Ryuk's eyes glinted and he gave a slow, dark chuckle. There was more to this than Light knew, he could sense that much. The girl reached into the folds of her strange costume and brought out an apple. Light's blood turned cold as she handed it to Ryuk, who grinned knowingly as he munched it. Maybe this girl was another kind of Death God.


	5. Chapter 5 Presence

FaLLen

Chapter 5 - Presence

Katrin was utterly delighted to be face-to-face with a real Shinigami. Able to touch him, hear him, see the juice of the apple mixing with his saliva. It was emotionally touching for her and she had to swallow down tears. She was living a fantasy and her head was swimming. His deep, slow chuckle had something of an ominous tone to it and it made her spine tingle. When she turned back to Light, she finally recognised the fear in his eyes. With a twinge of nerves, but spurred on by his waning confidence, she stared him down.

"Let's make our deal now. I could tell L all about you and your Death Note, your hiding place, the rules and how you kill with it. Or I could keep this information to myself, and more than that, help keep L off the scent."

"What do you want in return? Your life? A share in the glory?" Light's brow was smooth and his eyes unfeeling, but there was a youthful wobble in his voice that betrayed his emotion now. Ryuk gave his dark chuckle again. Katrin joined him, genuinely amused by Light's naivety. She had expected much more of him but he didn't have the same imposing presence of L, the same realness or humanity that so endeared the detective to her. She found that actually, she rather disliked Light.

"You over-estimate me, I'm afraid." She let her disappointment come through in her tone. "Yes, I want my life. You will not kill me and you will not kill L until I say the time is right. You understand, of course, that if I die you are a prime suspect?" She was lying through her teeth but Light was too shaken to question her now. "That's all. No glory."

He seemed to be considering her proposal. Ryuk's throaty laugh didn't let up even when Light glared at him. He was fully sided with 'Tsukiko', though he could see that wasn't her real name. He couldn't see the years she had left either, so she either had a Death Note, which meant that she was drawing Light into a trap and would probably kill him, or she wasn't human, which Ryuk suspected the most. There was something different about her, something inhuman – or at least not of this world. Maybe she was some kind of Death God that Ryuk hadn't come across before. She was so cunning that she would surely rank above him if she were one of his kind. But she wasn't. This wasn't the kind of disguise Shinigami took, not any more.

This made the game a little more interesting. And this L character would be interesting too. Ryuk snickered again. Light was screwed. But only when this girl gave the word.

Eventually Light gave in to her proposal. There was nothing else he could do, even Ryuk could see that - and he was hardly the brightest creature to have lived. After arranging to meet under the pretence of a date in a week's time, Light showed 'Tsukiko' to the door. Ryuk heard her politely decline lunch with the Yagami family before leaving. Her small, enrobed figure was already out of sight by the time Light returned to his room.

"I don't know what just happened, Ryuk," he admitted, "But I don't trust that girl one bit."

Ryuk gave himself over to that omniscient laugh yet again and told Light nothing.

* * *

Katrin knew deep in her bones that Ryuk knew her game. But wasn't it a Shinigami rule that he couldn't reveal her name? She was confident enough in her knowledge of her favourite story to let herself relax about the matter. She had shaken Light to his very core. Ryuk's incessant chuckling confirmed that. He found the whole matter amusing and that would cement his alliance with her, even if he officially wouldn't take sides.

Satisfied with a job well done, she checked her wallet – L's, technically, filled with L's money. She had enough to go shopping for clothes. Her spirits, already light from the encounter with the murderer, rose even more. She felt free for the first time in her life.

The afternoon was spent rushing around the shops she had so often daydreamt of visiting. She travelled back to the hotel laden with bags full of colourful Harajuku clothes. Close to weeping with happiness at this dream-come-true, she tenderly felt the fabric of each and every article of clothing as she put them away into the wardrobe in her hotel room. At last, she joined L in the large room that served as a living room, linking the side rooms – the bedrooms and bathrooms – together.

It was a large suite, and well furnished. The furniture was antique; some was shipped from England and traced its heritage back to the grand country mansions of the Georgian period, favoured unconsciously by L who craved the land in which he had been raised. Some came from France. These pieces Katrin loved best, she decided, as she wandered through the rooms that evening, her hands draping themselves on sideboards and following carved patterns on bookcases, trying the leather and velvet of the chairs and couches. Most of all, she loved the rug, which was large, round and oriental. The décor was mismatched but it suited L and Katrin felt herself suited to it too. L intended to have the furniture changed every few weeks. He could not let the room grow stale or his mind would lose some of its keenness.

"I'm back," Katrin announced, unnecessarily. L acknowledged her presence by holding out a skewer, which was speared through buns and donuts. Katrin's heart fluttered at the gesture. It was warming, something she had seen him do so many times before but for the first time it was aimed at her. She took the gift and flopped down beside him on the couch, biting a corner off a piece of cake.

L's eyes looked more sunken than they had that morning when she'd left. He was staring at the screen of his laptop as though waiting for a cue, which came as Katrin had almost finished her sweet skewer. His phone buzzed and he answered it delicately, his long, bony fingers grasping it as though it were dirty. After a few quickly spoken words, he hung up then typed something on his computer. Katrin glanced around for Watari, but when she couldn't see him, she returned her gaze to L. She wanted to ask where he was but didn't want to interrupt. Torn between the two options, she sat silently for a second, after which L broke the silence.

"We're going to speak to the NPA now. You will refer to yourself only as X and will only speak when I prompt you. Understood?"

Katrin nodded. The cunning and confidence she had exerted around Light was fading as L took charge. He really did have such a strong presence. Even on thinking that, the hairs on Katrin's arms stood up.

She turned her attention to the computer screen for the first time. The enigmatic 'L' character was on the screen, accompanied by the less familiar 'X' in the same typeface. Katrin's nerves suddenly started to take over again. Her stomach knotted with adrenaline and her palms started to sweat. If she messed this up, she could ruin her entire plan and then she might never get home. Worse, Light could kill her.

L held up a hand to hush her, though she was already making no noise in consideration of his working. Then, the police conference began.


End file.
